Vineyard cultivator guided by the tractor steering mechanism



Sept. l2, 1950 .1. B. Hos'rET-rER VINEYARD CULTIVATOR GUIDED BY THE TRACTOR STEERING MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 14, 1948 sept. 12, 195o TRACTOR STEERING MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 14, 1948 3 a: a ff /1 3 .V o vm. 0 o. 10 QM/ o 5 2 l a 1 l l 2 7 O 5/ Mu o h 3 o l h.. 4 Il a 1| #L W 5 l 0 ixlihn1| 2 L 5 0 0 o :u u. f5 1. a, l

Sept. l2, 1950 .1. B. HosTETTER 2,522,227

VTNETARD cuLTTvAToR GUIDED EY THE TRACTOR STEERING MECHANTSM Filed July 14, 1948 s sheets-sheet :s E

75L/mhz MT M@ Patented SeptQ 12, 1950 PATENT yOFFICE WINEYARD @ULT-IVATGR GUIDEDSBY EIlH-E L .'ERAGWGB: STEERINGrlWEGHANfI-SM faeobfligh Vlilosteinter, St."`Ca`tharines, '.Ontario, Canada,assigner` to T. Gri'ght `& Coe Limited, ftNiagara Falls, A"Gntariogi Canada, 7acorporation oflthe'iProvineeefrOntario appneationaulyii, 19re,`.serial.No.3s,-59s

`1 ."This invention .relates'to an `implement attachment for cultivatingplants,.and the objects of the invention are:

.lLTo control the working depth .of a revers- "ible Aelastically'donfiinated Vdepending cultivator positioned beyond the Apath .of the wheels of a carrying'tractor in an 'horizontal are from a fulcrurn. at .one .side and4 preferably .in front .of

the 'tractor and waggley it .roundleachplant in a rowbf plantslspaced apart, at alternating angles to .eachplant and at a preferred ratio in .relation to and simultaneously with and through the. .manual manipulation .of ,the steering `mech-- anism of said tractorftherebyeasily and rapidly cultivating saidplants in full .view of. the driver.

2. To` provide ampie.leverageiorthe reversible depending "cultivatorf longitu'dinallyly of the tractor so that the lateral angular and vertical movements thereof may'heireadily and easilyieffected.

3. 'To provide eiiicient `and simple manuallysetlelastic means to automatically regulateLthe working depth of the cultivator without intertering withmecessary movements thereof.

.4.. To so support the cultivator that it will autovmatically tilt on the .longitudinal axis Vof its sup port in conformity with thecontour ofthe ground `and thus promote' thorough cultivation.

5,Toprovide an implement for'thepurpose set forth thaty can .be attached 'to Avarious `rnakeszof tractors.

6. To` provide simple lin'lnand lever means between.the steering mechanismof the'tractor` and the cultivator whereby' the lattermay .be readily moved on its leverage.

7..'10 so support the reversible cultivator .that while .it moves down arow of plants the. earth is shifted longitudinally at one side only thereof and positively drawn away from the plants, or

hilled up therearound.

8. To provide a reversible elastically-dominat- "ed cultivator, the Zone of activity of which is in front oi the rear wheels of the tractor, and the shifting means for which is located between said `rearA and front wheels, `thus providing a compact aggroupment of elements that will economize storage space. 'It is usual -to seasonably plow the-widestpermissible'strip of ground between the rows of plants `(for example, grape vines, fruit trees, and currant bushes), and in so doing, 'often V'earth is lunduly heaped up around the stalks or trunks thereof. This surplus earth is vinjurious to the plant, and therefore by means of `this method, itis easily and readily removed Y-while at the same time weedsand grasses are cut andremovedrfrornraroundthe-plants. To do .Je claims. (Cumuler "r2 vthis i work mechanicauy quiciny and 4e'fsciently .is ya vitally" necessary requirementinv modern .culti- .vation uci" vineyards owing to the "high cost of "manualabon An implement "attachment within thisinventioncomprises a'support; a reach lpole attached .to said support and 'extending "longitudinally .of 1 the tractor'and"fulcrumed thereto preferably at theffront endthereof;` al reversible cultivator depending below saidsupport means carried. by

".thel tractorg'un'der manualLcontroLirom which said'support'is suspende'dto `'oe-raised andlowered" thereby; elasticmeanscarriedvgby the trac- .'tor and manually controlled 'whereby vertical pressure maybe regulated against said support and the cultivatorto4 determine working depth .'of the. latter, andilink andlever means Kcarried plained.

-bythe f tractor"'ir1termediate fthe steering arm and said support whereby said support-*may be moved through aniarc'from'itsfulcrum horizontally to waggle said cultivator laterally of said tractor,v as hereinafter more ...particularly eX- .'Fig. 1..is a1perspective View .of'thepr'eferred .'form ofymechanism to 'control .the movements and position of'the, cltivator, showing portions of a tractor supporting same.

, Fig.' 2 isaperspective Lview ofen alternative 'form tof means for raising 'and'Llowering thev cul- .tivatorand its supports.

`Fig."3.is4 aschematicgview of a row of spaced .plantssh'owing .relativelytheretothe .path of the supported cultivatorA 'when drawing away earth, andthenutposition of'the link andlever means for laterally moving the cultivator.

Figj 54 iis :a/ detail" of the .supporting means" for the upper' endsof the bars Y carrying the springs \in Fig. 1.

""Figs 5 andl 6' are schematic Iviews showing re- "speotively the positions of the 'cultivator when drawing away"and"hilling up.

the A'drawings like characters of' reference refer to the same parts.

., i Since the "cultivatortand its'l support' are Aeasily 'pole;"the"a-ng1e of the-workingface `of the `culti- -vatoris 1"constantly Vthanged "by the steering mechanism as thetractora'dvances. Asthe cul- -tivator is;inthepreferrediform, `a'"dishedstraight "blade,l 'it A working I'facefor its Nwhole A'length 'di- "rects the removed soil "outwardlyirom the plant in; slightly `changing-'angular directions.

Tojhillup therremoved eartnaround the gplantsgthe-arm directly carryingthe cultivator 'is uncoupled from 4kits support and "recoupled 3 thereto after turning it through an angle of 90. (See Figs. 5 and 6.)

In its preferred form (Fig. l) the mechanical embodiment of this invention comprises any suitable frame, the bars 2 and 3, of which are suitably braced together and suitably secured to the plate 4, which in turn is suitably supported by i the tractor (not shown).

Coupled at one end thereof by the shackle 5, to the bar 3, is a leaf spring 6, which rests upon a roller 1, journalled in brackets B, carried by the plate 9. The plate 9, is coupled to a reach pole I0, the outer end of which is coupled by a universal joint I I, to the draw-bar I2, which in turn is carried by the front end of the tractor (not shown).

Clamping the leaf spring 6 between them are plates I3 and I4, supported by the vertical rods I5 and I6, between the lower ends of which lies said leaf spring. The lower ends of the bars I5 and I6, slide through a plate 5I, secured to the bar 3. The upper ends of the bars are slidably held in a plate I1, which is braced by a rod I8, which passes through it and is anchored at its lower end in the bar 2. A plate I9, rests upon the plate l1, between the rods I5 and I6, and is pivoted to the lever 20 and secured to the rod I8. The lever 2U, is pivoted to the plate 2 I, which plate is carried by the support 22, secured to the bar 2. The lever 20, coacts with the toothed quadrant 23, in order to regulate the pressure of plate I1, upon the spiral springs 24, mounted on the rods I5 and I6. The springs 24, are vertically supported by the pins and plates 25, carried by said rods, and hence pressure of said springs is exerted through said rods and plate I4, upon the leaf spring 6. The pressure of the springs 24, are at their maximum in Fig. 1. The mechanism just described is used to maintain the cultivator at the desired working depth in the ground, and yet allow any necessary vertical movement thereof under working conditions.

The plate 9, moves longitudinally of the spring 6, and there is ample space between the brackets 8, to allow movement of the plate 9, on its fulcrum provided by the universal coupling II, without binding against the spring 6.

Any suitable means may be used to raise and lower the plate 9, and hence the cultivator blade or hoe 26, coupled thereto by the arm 21. The

preferred means for this purpose comprises a pair of braced standards 28, carried by the bar 2. Journalled in the upper ends of these standards are pulley wheels 29 over which passes a cable 36, connected at one end to the lever 3|, of the toothed quadrant 32, which is braced at its upper end by a standard 28, and supported at its lower end by the plate 33, carried by the bar 2. By means of the link 34, fixed to the plate 33, the lower end of the lever 3l, is pivotally supported. The other end of the cable 30, is connected to the plunger 35, slidably held in the tubular member 36, suitably carried by the bars 2 and 3. Through the medium of the cables or chains 31, coupling the cross bar 38, carried by the rod 35, to the plate 9, the driver is enabled to use the lever 3|, to raise said plate and its cultivator 26, above the ground, or lower it thereto.

Any suitable link and lever means may be used under the control of the driver through the medium of the steering mechanism to move the plate 9, and cultivator 26, round the fulcrum provided by the universal coupling I I, at the desired ratio to the movement of the steering arm 39, when cultivating the plants.l The preferred means comprises a link 4U, carried by the steering arm and pivoted to the link 4I. Pivoted to the link 4I, is a lever 42, pivoted to the flange of the plate 4. The lever 42, is coupled by a universal joint 43, with the bar 44, which is coupled to the plate 9, by the universal joint 45. In the position of the parts just described (Figs. 1 and 2) the cultivator is assumed to be in the ground and the said parts 4I, to 44, are in a contracted position. If the steering wheel (not shown) is turned clockwise the parts under consideration by means of the steering-rod 41, pivoted to the steering-arm 31, by the socket 46 assume the positions shown in Fig. 3, where the cultivator is lowered and put to work. By alternately moving the steering wheel (not shown) clock-wise and counter-clockwise, the driver waggles the cultivator round the plants.

The link and lever means used preferably operates in a ratio to the movement of the steering arm 39, so that when the said arm is moved through a small arc the advancing end of the cultivator 26, is moved through a comparatively large arc. This ratio may of course be altered, but in practice it has been proven to give excellent results.

In place of using the mechanism shown in Fig. 1, to raise and lower the cultivator, an hydraulic jack 50, may be used. This jack is coupled to the plate 9, substantially as shown, or in any other suitable manner. The full and dotted lines, a and b, Fig. 3, show the path of the cultivator as it works down each side of a row of plants, and the space c, between these lines shows the area overlapped by the cultivator.

The positions of the cultivator in drawing away the earth and afterwards hilling it up, are shown schematically in Figs. 5 and 6.

When the cultivator is working the chains or cables 31, are slack, and hence the plate 9, is free to be manually moved laterally, and to be tilted into various angular positions to the horizontal by the contour of the ground and thus permit the cultivator to function eiciently.

A depending cultivator as herein identied, means one that is not rigidly coupled to a tractor, nor coupled thereto in such a manner as to have a very circumscribed range of movement, and it is so associated with the tractor to function beyond the path of the tractor wheels that it may freely automatically conform to the contour of the ground while the lateral range of movements thereof is readily determined and easily controlled by the driver.

A lever 52 (Fig. 2) is pivoted to the lower end of the toothed quadrant 53, carried by the bar 2. Carried by the lever 52, is a pulley wheel 54, over which passes a rope or cable 55. One portion of the rope or cable 55, passes down under pulley wheels 56 and 51, journalled in the bar 3. The upper end of said portion is attached to the plate I1 at one side of the rod I8', carried by the bar 2. The other portion of said rope or cable 155, is likewise mounted and secured on the opposite side of the bars 2 and 3.

By means of the parts-just described the operator, through the medium of the lever 52, can regulate the pressure of the springs 24, upon the leaf spring 6,

While herein has been described the preferred form of operating mechanism for the cultivator, as illustrated in the drawings, and preferred and alternative forms of mechanism for raising and lowering the cultivator,v it must be understood that changes 11n-construction may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. An implement attachment comprising a support movable about a fulcrum, a cultivator depending therefrom; supporting means adapted to be attached to a tractor; a leaf spring hinged at its inner end to said supporting means and resting in contact with said support; means to raise and lower said support and its cultivator; elastic means under the control of the operator adapted to exert pressure upon said leaf spring; link and lever means mounted on the tractor and connected with said cultivator support, and steering means for the tractor connected with said link and lever means and adapted to coact therewith for the purpose set forth.

2. An implement attachment comprising a support movable about a fulcrum; a cultivator depending therefrom; supporting means :adapted to be attached to a tractor; a leaf spring hinged at its inner end to said supporting means and resting in contact with said support; means to raise and lower said support and its cultivator; a pair of rods vertically carried by said supporting means and -coupled to said leaf spring; a spiral spring on each rod; manually operated means to regulate pressure of said springs on said leaf spring; link and lever means mounted on the tractor and connected with said cultivator support, andk steering means for the tractor connected with said link and lever means and adapted to coact therewith for the purpose set forth.

3. An implement attachment comprising a support movable about a fulcrum; a cultivator depending therefrom; supporting means adapted to be attached to a tractor; a leaf spring hinged at its inner end. to said supporting means and resting in contact `with said support; means to raise and lower said support and its cultivator; a pair of rods vertically carried by said supporting means and coupled to said leaf spring; a spiral spring on each rod; manually operated means to regulate pressure of said springs on said leaf springs; link and lever means mounted on the tractor and connected with said cultivator support, and steering means for said tractor connected with said link and lever means and adapted to coact therewith for the purpose set forth.

4. In combination a tractor having steering Wheels each provided with a steering arm; a support movable about a fulcrum supported by said tractor; a cultivator depending from said support and a series of link-like members pivotally supported by said tractor and hinged together and coupling one of said steering arms and said cultivator support together, for the purpose specifled.

5. An implement attachment comprising a support movable about a fulcrum, :a cultivator depending therefrom; supporting means adapted to be attached to a tractor; a means hinged at its inner end to said supporting means and adapted to exert yielding pressure against said support; means to raise and lower said support and its cultivator; elastic means under the control of the operator adapted to exert pressure upon said hinged means; link and lever means pivotally supported by said tractor and connected with said cultivator support, and steering means for the tractor connected with said link and lever .means :and adapted to coact therewith for the purpose set forth.

JACOB BLIGH HOSTETTER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

